“Holiday Mail for Heroes” to Deliver One Million Cards to Service Members and Families
Red Cross, Pitney Bowes to Screen, Sort, Deliver Cards Before Holidays
National Headquarters
2025 E Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20006
www.redcross.org
Organization: Red Cross Public Affairs
Phone: (202)303-5551
[email protected]
WASHINGTON, Monday, November 10, 2008 — The American Red Cross and Pitney Bowes Inc. are teaming up to send holiday cards to service men and women in the United States and around the world. From Tuesday, November 11 until Wednesday, December 10, the public is invited to send holiday cards with their message of thanks and cheer to a special post office box. The Red Cross and Pitney Bowes will then screen cards for hazardous materials, sort and package the cards, and deliver them to military bases and hospitals, veteran’s hospitals, and other locations during the holidays.
Holiday Mail For Heroes continues the Red Cross tradition of service to the armed forces, which includes handling emergency communications that link service members with their families back home, providing access to financial assistance from the military aid societies, counseling, referral to community resources and assistance to veterans. Pitney Bowes is providing all screening, packaging and shipping at no charge, as well as providing thousands of volunteer hours from employees around the country.
“This opportunity is such a great way for the public to personally support the military and say a special thank you for their service this holiday season,” said Gail McGovern, Red Cross President and CEO. “I’m especially proud that the Red Cross is able to be a part of this effort, and I hope everyone will take the time to join us and send an extra card for the military.”
In 2007 Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. approached the Red Cross to distribute thousands of holiday cards coming to the facility for wounded troops. The Red Cross reached out to Pitney Bowes to turn the project into a larger opportunity that could reach members of the military at other facilities. In all, nearly 600,000 cards were screened for hazardous materials, sorted, and delivered in 2007.
“Pitney Bowes is proud to be working with the American Red Cross again to help Americans extend their well wishes and gratitude to the heroes who serve and protect our country,” said Jon Love, President of Pitney Bowes Government Solutions. “Last year’s program was a huge success and we look forward to working with the public to reach even more wounded service members and their families this holiday season to show appreciation and support.”
Holiday cards should be addressed and sent to:
Holiday Mail For Heroes
P.O. Box 5456
Capitol Heights, MD 20791-5456
Please be sure to affix adequate postage. Cards must be received no later than December 10. Cards received after this date will be returned to senders. To help speed the sorting process and delivery of cards and notes before the holidays, mailers are encouraged to refrain from sending “care packages,” monetary gifts, using glitter or including any other inserts. For a full list of recommended guidelines and best practices, please visit Redcross.org/holidaymail. Cards are also available to print out from the website, along with messages from Red Cross National Celebrity Cabinet Members Dr. Phil McGraw and Nancy O’Dell, co-anchor of Access Hollywood. You can also leave a message on the Red Cross Service to the Armed Forces Facebook Wall.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and counsels victims of disasters; provides nearly half of the nation's blood supply; teaches lifesaving skills; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization - not a government agency - and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its humanitarian mission. For more information, please visit www.redcross.org or join our blog at www.redcrosschat.org.
About Pitney Bowes:
Pitney Bowes is a mailstream technology company that helps organizations manage the flow of information, mail, documents and packages. Our 36,000 employees deliver technology, service and innovation to more than two million customers worldwide. The company was founded in 1920 and annual revenues now total $6.4 billion. More information is available at www.pb.com.
address to send xmas cards to troops
by purplesofa 3 Replies latest jw friends
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purplesofa
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Tired of the Hypocrisy
Thanks, this is good info!
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mama1119
Thanks for that!!
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DazedAndConfused
Thank you so much for that information!!! I have my husband right now signing his 25 cards. I had many questions regarding how these were to be sent, etc. There is a link in the original post that explains about how to go about doing this. On their website they say this:
Card Guidelines
Please follow these guidelines when mailing a card to ensure that your card will quickly reach service members, veterans and their families. Every card received will first be screened for hazardous materials by Pitney Bowes and then reviewed by Red Cross volunteers working in one of 16 sorting stations around the country.
- All cards must be postmarked no later than Wednesday, December 10, 2008. Cards sent after this date will be returned to sender.
- Participants are encouraged to limit the number of cards they submit to 25 from any one person or 50 from any one class or group. If you are mailing a larger quantity, please bundle the cards and place them in large mailing envelopes. Each card does not need its own envelope or postage.
- Please ensure that all cards are signed.
- Please use generic salutations such as “Dear Service Member.” Cards addressed to specific individuals can not be delivered through this program.
- Please send cards as opposed to long letters which delay a quick review process.
- Please do not include email or home addresses on the cards, as the program is not meant to foster pen pal relationships.
- Please do not include inserts of any kind, including photos, as these items will be removed during the reviewing process.
- All cards received may be used in program publicity efforts, including appearing in broadcast, print or online mediums.
You can also send Phone cards, Gift cards and Care packages.
Thank you again for this information. The troops need our support, and anything that gets hubby to do something (tongue in cheek) is a good thing. lol